NEWS OF THE WEEK.
THE Emperor William has followed up his visit to the Queen by a reception of the Emperor of Austria at Berlin. Beyond the usual festivities and reviews and sham-fights, in which the newest military developments were exhibited, there has been little to call for special remark. In the speeches at the grand banquet of Tuesday, in which the allied Sovereigns publicly pledged each other, a more than ordinary emphasis seems, however, to have been laid upon the firmness of the Triple Alliance. In tones of great seriousness, the German Emperor spoke of the allied armies-as being resolved " to stand up for the peace of our nations, and, moreover, should Providence will it so, to fight together for that end shoulder to shoulder,"—phrases which, though they partake somewhat of the nature of the Irishmen's famous determina- tion "to fight like devils for conciliation," yet indicate clearly the very militant notions in regard to peace which prevail at Berlin. In answer, the Austrian Kaiser, producing a paper from his pocket, and getting out his spectacles, read a some- what stilted reply, of which, however, the tone was very much less aggressively pacific. The German Press is naturally elated at these visible proofs of the strength of the alliance, and unquestionably they have a right to be proud of the results of Prince Bismarck's diplomacy. Europe, too, may not unreasonably look upon the Triple Alliance with satis- faction. A Committee of Powers is much less likely to be moved by a rash impulse than a single Sovereign. The mere necessities of intercommunication and consultation greatly modify the danger of a precipitate recourse to hostilities.
